In depth on the Roland TB303
If you’re interested in the early history of ROLAND, the Japanese manufacturer of electronic musical instruments and the TB-303 Bassline, you’ll enjoy this 20-minute video. The TB-303 and its design are described in depth, and many examples of popular music made with the machine are presented
Roland TB-303 Documentary BASSLINE BASELINE by Nate Harrison from Jack Time on Vimeo.
History of the vocoder
If you’ve listened to pop music in the past 40 years, you’ve probably heard more than a few songs with a robotic sound. That’s thanks to the vocoder, a device invented by Bell Labs, the research division of AT&T. Though the vocoder has found its way into music, the machine was never intended for that function. Rather, it was developed to decrease the cost of long-distance calls and has taken on numerous other uses since.
Music journalist Dave Tompkins has written a book about the vocoder and its unlikely history. It’s called How to Wreck a Nice Beach: The Vocoder From World War II to Hip-Hop.
Tompkins says the machine played a significant role in World War II. After the U.S. government discovered that Winston Churchill’s conversations with Franklin D. Roosevelt were being intercepted and deciphered by the Germans, it decided to invest in speech-encoding technology. So the National Defense Research Committee commissioned Bell Labs in 1942 to develop a machine — and Bell Labs delivered.
The vocoder wasn’t without its flaws. Intelligibility of speech sometimes proved a problem, but Tompkins says pitch control was a bigger concern.
“They didn’t mind world leaders sounding like robots, just as long as they didn’t sound like chipmunks,” he says. “Eisenhower did not want to sound like a chipmunk.”
From Military Base To Music Studio
The vocoder experienced a major transition from military device to musical effect when Wendy Carlos used it on the soundtrack for 1971’s A Clockwork Orange. Carlos did a vocoder interpretation of the fourth movement of Beethoven‘s Ninth Symphony, which Tompkins says exposed the vocoder in unprecedented ways.
“Essentially, that introduced the vocoder to its first major audience,” he says. “A lot people had no idea what it was. As the vocoder evolved, they knew the voice but had no idea where it came from.”
After A Clockwork Orange, though it was still an expensive technology, the vocoder saw wider use in music studios. The German band Kraftwerk was one of the first musicians to employ it in its work. It fit perfectly, Tompkins says, because the band’s work was primarily electronic.
Later, in the 1980s, the vocoder became the voice of electro-funk hip-hop. Michael Jonzun recorded what is believed to be the first hip-hop vocoder album, Lost in Space, in 1983. The futuristic sounds complemented the synthesizer, which became widely heard in music from that decade.
The vocoder is less prevalent in today’s popular music, but its legacy lives on. Its successor is Auto-Tune, the pitch-correcting software prominent in popular music today.
To read excerpt from the book and order go here >>
The CODE 4OD in action
Here’s a smattering of presets from the mega-awesome polysynth from Studio Electronics, The CODE 4OD. The CODE sports Moog and Oberheim-style filters stock. Yamaha CS-80, Arp 2600 and TB-303 style filter cards can be added by the user. The CODE’s we carry come standard with four voice cards which give you four note polyphony. Other voice cards can be added, allowing you up to eight voices total. This is definitely one of the best sounding polysynths ever made and has some great modern features like storable presets, lFO’s that sync, cross-modulation, and a switchable overdrive on the output section(hence the “OD”) Please note that the Code sounds much better in person or with a proper preamp;) The chord sequence is being generated by the Elektron Machinedrum midi machine.
Roland’s new Octapad released
Featuring eight trigger pads, built-in sounds, multi-effects, and external trigger inputs, the OCTAPAD SPD-30 is the perfect portable electronic percussion instrument for any playing application.
Using the latest trigger technology from Roland’s industry-leading V-Drums®, the pads on the OCTAPAD SPD-30 feature an extremely natural and responsive playing feel. The eight separate trigger surfaces provide superior dynamic response, trigger consistency over a pad’s entire surface, and the elimination of crosstalk.
The OCTAPAD SPD-30 includes 50 kits and hundreds of cutting-edge drum and percussion sounds. Powerful onboard effects include 30 types of multi-effects that can be used on individual kits, and Ambience with an Equalizer and Limiter that can be applied to the overall OCTAPAD SPD-30 sound. The Phrase Loop recording feature allows the player to loop recorded sounds in real time, and then overdub additional parts or sounds. With the ability to record three parts per phrase, Phrase Loop is a powerful creative tool for live performance and recording.
The external trigger/control inputs allow players to connect additional pads, and a hi-hat controller to create a powerful yet portable mini-electronic kit. The OCTAPAD SPD-30 is also compatible with Roland RT-Series acoustic drum triggers, creating additional options for drummers who want to add electronics to their acoustic drum set.
With its large backlit LCD and intuitive interface, navigating menus and editing parameters on the OCTAPAD SPD-30 is extremely easy. The pads also feature illuminated LEDs, helpful for performing in low-light settings. In addition, the OCTAPAD SPD-30 has USB connectivity for both data backup and MIDI allowing players to expand their recording capabilities with personal computers. Standard MIDI connections are also included, allowing connection to external sound modules, samplers and other MIDI devices.
SabaTwo Tiga – new free VST
SabaTwoTiga
SabaTwoTiga is a free VST instrument for powerful electronic leads. The 4 voice selector knob allows you to quickly find a tone. 2-way switches modify the sound in an all or nothing fashion, eliminating time spent mousing for a new sound. It is a beefy and musical synth.
Features:
- 4-Way Voice Selector (1, 2, 1+2, Ring Mod)
- Mono Mode (glide)
- Two Tuneable Sub Saws
- Filter Control
- Tempo Sync-LFO (Wobble Mode)
Installation: Place in your VST or Steinberg VST folder.
Modulation on Reaktor
Found this video clip on Reaktor modulation using the RS 95 VCO
Enjoy
RS 95 is an enhanced precision voltage controlled oscillator High frequency stability & excellent musical tracking over a ten octave range. Accurate waveforms of sinewave, sawtooth, triangle, square & pulse are available as separate outputs, the waveshapes can be independently voltage controlled. a wide range mode allows the oscillator to operate in both supersonic and subsonic frequency ranges as well as in the audio frequency range. Hard sync input for classic complex lead sounds. A high quality ten turn multiturn frequency dial allowing precise tuning of frequencies & incorporating a lock to ensure the dial cannot be turned accidentally. A perfect partner for the rs500e and rs510e modules to give the classic EMS synthi look and feel to any system.
8-bit music
It’s impossible to explore 8-bit music videos without at least dabbling in the world of chiptunes — music crafted in the style of, and often with the same computer hardware of, old-school games. Chiptune songstress Leeni’s clip for “Underworld” plays like a videogame stage show. Stick around for the eye-popping pixel light show towards the end.
Wired Mag has chosen the top chiptune videos
Sound design with Alchemy and NeKo
Below is a nice video tutorial featuring the classic virtual instrument; Camel Audio Alchemy. The video is also interesting since sound designer Jim Stout is running Alchemy via an Open Labs Neko and the video gives you a good sense of how this system works. NeKo XXL is virtually all of the major components of a professional studio fused together in seamless, coherent instrument that is the quintessential definition of style and functionality. You can compose, record, mix, master and even distribute music of the highest quality only using the NeKo XXL and the tens of thousands of included sound presets.
New sequencer for iPad
BeepStreet has announced iSequence for iPad, an updated version of its iPhone music sequencer.
Features include:
- Use one of 160 built-in instruments: a collection of acoustic instruments, drum kits, pads, leads, sweeps and ambient atmospheres recorded with top classic and modern hardware synthesizers.
- Buy additional banks in the BankShop
- Play using adjustable piano keyboard or large drum pads
- Record as you play the notes. Change instruments and tracks without stopping playback
- Record parameter changes as you move controls
- 8 tracks and FX curves editor. Instruments are not bound to tracks, so you can play chords or use multiple instruments on a single track
- Edit music events using piano keyboard, drum pads and other controls
- Set note duration, panning, velocity and gliss
- Copy/paste, move and transpose selected area or patterns
- Arrange pattern sequences to create a complete song
- Export your work as HSQ, MIDI or WAV
According to the developers, the iPad edition has been rewritten and redefined to take advantage of a bigger screen and better performance.
Pricing and Availability
The regular price is $14.99. An introductory price of $6.99 is being offered until May 30, 2010.
Link:
Re-issuing the old electro classic
Dieter Moebius (Cluster, Harmonia) is one of the most important protagonists of avant-garde electronic music in Germany. Conny Plank is the most legendary sound engineer of the German Underground (NEU!, Kraftwerk, Harmonia, Cluster, DAF etc.)
They got to know each other through their work on Cluster’s 1971 album and remained friends until Plank’s death in 1987. They made a congenial pair as musicians, as amply demonstrated by their brace of albums “Rastakraut Pasta” (1980) and “Material” (1981) which are now being reissued by Bureau B. Both releases come as a CD digipak and 180 gram high quality vinyl.
Read the full story here >> PDF BB48+49Moebius+PlankOneSheet
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